Book Reviews (III)

As a former journalist, I know how difficult it is to encapsulate a complex issue or a lengthy interview or a major pronouncement into an article of just a few hundred words. It's a rare ability and one I have always admired, especially among journalists on commercial radio stations who have to summarise day-long court cases or Parliamentary debates into brief reports, all the while ensuring the reports are fair - and accurate.

It's the same with book reviews, I am sure.

The review you see above was published this last Sunday in The Sun Herald, which is one of two Sunday popular papers in Sydney, with a weekly readership of about 1.6 million. It was written by Frank Walker, a senior journalist at the paper and someone I have known professionally for many years. He is a tough bastard, Frank. Uncompromising. Which is why I was thrilled by his review - and the way he has managed to encapsulate the essence of Child of the Revolution into just 120 or so word. Count them.